Carnival!
by Orpah
Summary: England, America, Canada and Australia go to the carnival. Who knew Canada had a fear of heights? Little!Canada, America and Australia.
1. Fear on the Ferris Wheel

Well, this is just for fun, and is not particularly based on any historical events. But I was watching some really old cartoons, and somehow I got the inspiration to do this! I hope you guys enjoy it! It's kinda AU...

And, honestly speaking, England did not have Canada, America and Australia at the same time, but I felt strangely obligated to include him too...

Australia = Jack

I don't own Hetalia! end /AN/

Alfred gripped Matthew's hand excitedly, looking at the rides and the bright lights everywhere. The smell of popcorn and funnel cake hung in the air, causing both twins to become alert. Alfred looked back at Arthur eagerly.

"Can we go now?! Can we?!" Arthur sighed in response, trying to placate Jack, who was in a baby carrier on his back. The tot had chosen this moment to be discontented with his position, and was expressing it by pulling at Arthur's hair.

"Just- just a moment, Alfred... Jack, stop that!" Jack giggled, while Alfred looked on impatiently, jumping up and down. "Aaaarrthuuurrr!" he whined, drawing it out so much it was almost ridiculous, and had it not been annoying, Arthur would have laughed.

"Okay, okay... What ride do you want to go on first?" Alfred's expression was absolutely thrilled as he pointed animatedly at the Ferris Wheel. "Mattie and I want to go on that!"

Arthur nodded, calling after them as Alfred dragged Matthew away, "Stick together! I'll wait for you at the exit!" As they disappeared, he moved to where he could watch the Ferris Wheel, which was at least three stories tall.

From Alfred's point of view, it looked even taller- making him all the more eager to ride it. He gave the carnival worker two tickets for himself and Matthew, and then they were both in one of the enclosed seats. As the door clicked shut, locking them in, Alfred bounced in his seat, waiting for the ride to start.

It started with a sudden clank, then smoothly lifted them higher- and higher- and higher. With every foot gained, Alfred's heart soared. How wonderful, how exhilirating! How could anyone not love this?

A sharp, piercing noise coming from right next to him told him precisely who could not love it. He looked over at Matthew, who was huddled on the floor crying. "I want off I want off I want off!" he wailed, staying as low to the floor as possible, as if the inches gained really made a difference in how high up he was.

Alfred just stared at his brother, dumbfounded. He couldn't quite figure out why he was so upset... Wasn't this exciting for him too?

Plopping down next to his twin, he wrapped his arm around his quivering shoulders. "Stop crying," he said, trying to be comforting but failing to understand why Matthew was so upset. His twin, however, somehow took it as a comfort, and leaned into him, still shakily informing him he wanted off.

Alfred sighed. "Don't worry Mattie, look- we're getting back to the ground already." A part of him was disappointed it would be over so soon, but that was the selfish part the other side kicked into submission. His brother looked up cautiously, as if doubting Alfred's word. Sure enough, they were very near the ground, and Matthew seemed to relax.

But it didn't stop when it became level with the ground again, causing Alfred's heart to sink as his body was lifted higher again and Matthew started to cry and plead with Alfred to make the carnival workers let them get off. Alfred wished he had known beforehand that Matthew was so deathly afraid of heights... Though, come to think of it, Matthew did react this way when they rode a plane for the first time. Arthur had sat him in his lap the whole way there, having him cover his eyes...

That was it! "Close your eyes, Mattie, it'll be okay!" he practically chirped. Matthew looked at him like he'd gone crazy, but did what he said, clapping his hands over his eyes. Alfred wrapped his arms around his brother, since he honestly didn't want Matthew sitting on his lap and cutting off circulation to his legs.

It continued in uncomfortable silence like that, until finally it slowed to a stop. "You can open your eyes now, it's done!" Matthew barely had a chance to do as Alfred said, because the older twin had already jumped up and was pulling him out with him. Matthew nearly fell down, but barely managed to keep his balance, scrubbing at his face with his sleeve. They nearly collided with Arthur and Jack, the latter of whom was mixing his cotton candy with the former's hair. Arthur smiled at them both.

"Did you have fun?" Alfred responded with a dismissive wave of his hand. "Pfft. Who cares about Ferris Wheels, we need to go on the Merry-go-round now!"

/AN/ I hope that was cute... I'm a little sleep-deprived, so I could think little kids beating the crap out of a giant rabbit was cute...


	2. Mayhem on the Merrygoround

And, I thought it would be fun to do a second chapter! I hope you enjoy it!

I don't own Hetalia! end /AN/

Arthur carefully seated Jack on one of the ponies, causing squeals of excitement from the tot. He glanced over to find Alfred had chosen a bucking bronco, and Matthew had chosen circus horse. Alfred started to snicker at his brother's horse.

"That's a girly horse, Mattie!" Matthew quickly flushed an embarassed red. "It is not! Arthur, it's not a girly horse, is it?" he looked over pleadingly at Arthur. The British man looked back at him, coughed, and then shook his head. Matthew looked back almost triumphantly at Alfred. "See, Arthur says it's not a girly horse!"

Alfred looked displeased. "It is so a girly horse..." he mumbled, not liking being the only one on his side at the moment. He brightened as the music began and the ride came to life, dispute completely forgotten.

The horses moved up and down, slowly gaining speed. It was still a very comfortable speed, however, so Alfred tried to add to the excitement by yelling. "Faster, Bingo, faster! Yah!"

Arthur looked confused - and slightly annoyed- and leaned over to tap Alfred on the back of the head. "What on earth are you doing? And what's bingo?"

Alfred grinned back. "Bingo's this horse! I'm telling him to go faster!"

"Well, I'm telling you to stop yelling. You're bothering the other children." Alfred completely ignored Arthur, kicking his horse to try and make it go faster. "Come on Bingo, giddyup! We gotta get away from Arthur! Yah!"

Arthur grimaced at the looks he was getting from the other parents. He tapped Alfred on the back of the head, nearly losing his balance on the dizzying contraption. "Alfred! You're bothering the other children!"

"Oh no! Hurry Bingo, he's almost got us! Giddyup!" Arthur vaguely wondered if Alfred knew he could not actually get his horse to go any faster. Matthew was looking straight ahead and probably pretending not to be related. What a smart kid.

"Alfred, stop that behavior this instant, or I will bodily remove you from that horse!" Arthur almost hissed angrily. Being the independent kid he was, however, Alfred pretended he hadn't heard him.

Arthur had to lift Jack off his pony, eliciting angry shrieks from the small child, and reached over and pulled Alfred down as well, much to the indignation of the boy. "Hey! Arthur, I want to ride the horse! Arthur!!"

"Since you can't behave, you won't ride at all!" Arthur grumpily informed him. Both of the children he currently grasped continued to scream angrily, until the ride started to slow down. A voice came over the microphone. "Can the blonde man with the screaming kids please get off? The rest of you may remain seated."

Arthur realised with embarassment that the commotion had actually caused the ride to be stopped. His face heated up, and he quickly marched off with the two in tow, mumbling profuse apologies. He seated both on a bench as soon as he got out of sight range of the merry-go-around, looking at Alfred severely.

"Arthur! Why'd you take us off the ride?!" He sounded very bitter about it, as little kids are apt to be. Jack just continued to shriek furiously. Arthur tried to calm him first, patting him on the back and promising more cotton candy. As soon as the tot had stopped screaming, he turned on Alfred.

"That was a bad way to behave, Alfred! You'll have to sit out on the next ride!" Alfred looked like the wind had been blown out of his sails. "But why?! I'm already missing out on the merry-go-round! That's not fair!"

"It is fair, and you'll do as I say! We're going to go on the kiddie rollercoaster next," Arthur still looked sternly at Alfred, whose face started turning red. Arthur's eyes widened. Oh no, not the waterworks...

"I won't do it again! I'll be good, just let me come on the next ride!" he practically wailed, the prospect of missing out on a real rollercoaster far too upsetting for him. Arthur sighed as he felt his resolve crumble. He didn't want to have to deal with a moody Alfred the rest of the day...

"Okay, okay, fine. But you only get one more chance, alright?" Alfred was positively ecstatic, hugging Arthur and then trying to pull him towards the kiddie rollercoaster. Arthur sighed, glad to have weathered the storm. The nagging feeling he'd forgotten something just wouldn't go away, though...

Meanwhile, as the carousel ride ended, Matthew sat forlornly on his horse, sniffling.

/AN/ Poor Mattie! Wait and see what happens next chapter!! I'm taking suggestions for the types of rides/attractions they can do!


	3. Grumbling on the Grounds

And now, for those teacup twirly things! I don't think I've ever actually been on one of those though, strangely enough... And you haven't either, Paul, so shut up! *continues to yell at best friend*

Anyway, so thanks for all the reviews guys! Without further ado, here is the third chapter!

I don't own Hetalia! end /AN/

"That was awesome, but I wish we could go on a real rollercoaster!!" If Alfred had seemed hyper before, he was twice as much now. Arthur sighed, grabbing his hand so he didn't run off or get lost as they left the ride. They made their way to another bench, with Alfred still excitedly screaming about the ride and Jack joining in, though he wasn't really saying anything.

"Do you need to go to the bathroom, guys?" Alfred shook his head while Jack screeched his displeasure at the very idea, making Arthur cover his ears. "Fine, fine! A simple 'no' would suffice!" He sighed as they quieted, putting his hands on his hips. "Okay, where are we going to go next?"

"The teacups! The teacups, Arthur!" Alfred shouted enthusiasticly, causing Arthur to laugh a little. Normally, he would have expected Alfred to denounce such a ride as 'girly' and skip it. Matthew was always the one who wanted to... Arthur stopped midsentence in shock. Matthew! He picked up Jack and grabbed Alfred's arm, setting off in the direction of the merry-go-round with reckless speed.

meanwhile

Matthew had abandoned the merry-go-round when the carnival worker told him he couldn't ride a second time around, and was now wandering through the fairground. Though it had been only vaguely frightening before, now it was downright terrifying.

"Arthur...?" Matthew almost whispered into the crowd, trying to navigate among the long legs of the adults and the eager children. He was buffeted around, and ended up falling down on his face, still clutching his favorite teddy. He pushed himself up onto his hands and knees, his shoulders beginning to shake as he felt so forgotten. His eyes stung, and he quickly swiped at them, willing himself not to cry. If he stopped to cry now, he might miss his family.

He forced himself back onto his feet, and looked around. His heart leaped as he spotted a familiar set of legs and a blonde boy being dragged along by an arm belonging to the legs. There they were! And it looked like they were looking for him!

He set off after them as fast as he could go, nearly barreling into the other boy's back, eliciting a startled cry from him. "Arthur! Here I am!" Matthew said, looking up eagerly... Only to be met with a set of confused red eyes. The eyes quickly became concerned as all Matthew did was stare up in crushed shock.

"Hey, little kid, are you lost?" The white-haired man crouched down to his level, while the other kid just watched with a blank expression. Matthew could feel his eyes start to sting again as he nodded, holding his bear closer.

"Um, okay... Well, I'm Gilbert, and this is Ludwig. Do you know where your parents might be?" Matthew shook his head, mumbling, "He left me behind on the merry-go-round." Gilbert raised his eyebrows. "Well, that's terrible parenting. Let's go find your dad so I can talk some sense into him! Imagine, leaving some poor little kid behind like that!"

Matthew was surprised to find himself being lifted by Gilbert, as if he were some baby. Ludwig just watched, his expression communicating that this happened frequently. His big brother just couldn't resist little cute things, after all...

meanwhile

"He was right here! Where could he have gone?!" Arthur was frantic. Only his guilt at leaving Matthew behind again overshadowed how absolutely worried he was. Alfred tugged at the grip on his wrist, complaining that "I can't even feel my wrist bones anymore, Arthur!"

Jack was not aware enough to realize that his other brother was amiss and possibly in danger, and therefore was crabbily kicking Arthur in the back from his baby carrier.

Arthur managed to ignore both children as he stopped a man with a little girl angrily screaming at him. "Hey, hey excuse me! This is an emergency!"

The man looked up from being berated to smile at Arthur. "Hi, I'm Antonio. What's the matter?"

"Um, yeah, nice to meet you, I'm Arthur. Have you seen a blonde kid about this tall, carrying a teddy bear? It's really important." Antonio obviously did not doubt the seriousness of the situation, reading Arthur's expression clearly. "Um, sorry... We haven't seen him. Maybe you should check with the park security, they might have noticed him somewhere."

"Okay, we'll try that! Thanks!" Arthur managed to flash a smile, while the little girl screamed at Antonio, "Hey stupid, are you even listening to me?!"

"Of course I'm listening Lovi- ah! Please don't kick my kneecaps, Lovi..." Arthur didn't get to hear the rest of the argument, instead busying himself in searching for a park security guard. He only hoped he could find Matthew before the poor kid lost all faith in him...

/AN/ Okay, I just got my own computer! It's a cute little netbook, and I love it to pieces! Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! And, yeah, I know they didn't go on the teacups ride... But they might... I think I might have changed the whole plotline now...


	4. Reunion near the Rollercoaster

And, now I'm trying to make up for not updating anything for so long. So naturally, I thought I'd update Carnival. I hope you guys enjoy it!

I don't own Hetalia! end /AN/

Prussia had gotten distracted from his task, buying both boys popcorn balls, cotton candy, and caramel apples as they went along. Matthew would have said something, but this man seemed nice, and the snacks were really tasty. The other child had been introduced to him as Ludwig, and was a surprisingly quiet child, considering his older brother.

"Hey, hey, do you guys want to go on the mini rollercoaster? It looks pretty wicked..." Gilbert said with a devious grin at Ludwig. Matthew looked at him with wide eyes. "It does? Is it scary?"

"Very, but I think you can handle it, little man!" Gilbert replied, while Ludwig was rolling his eyes. Matthew looked thoughtful, then grinned slowly. "I guess I can try it then."

"That's the spirit!" Gilbert crowed, taking both boys over to the ticket booth for the ride. "Two, please." He set Matthew down, then turned to seriously face Ludwig.

"Now, Ludwig, Mattie here is your responsibility on the ride, okay? If it looks like he's flying off, you have to hold onto to him with everything you've got! Understood?!" Ludwig threw a salute in response to Gilbert's melodramatic order, and Gilbert nodded seriously. Then he broke into a grin.

"Okay, you guys have fun!" Ludwig grabbed Matthew's hand, leading him onto the ride. Matthew had pretty much forgotten he'd been left behind by now...

However, Arthur certainly had not.

He was still scouring the grounds, enduring Alfred and Jack's whining with the patience of a saint. Okay, so, maybe not a saint, but he thought he was being very patient.

He'd searched every snack stand, every restroom, and every tent thus far. That left only the rides in the west side of the park.

"Why can't I just ride on the rides while you search for Matthew?" Alfred asked again, unable to comprehend that this would lead to similiar problem as the one they had now. Arthur just gritted his teeth, almost growling, "I already explained that to you, Alfred! Quit complaining, you'll ride the rides as soon as we find your brother!"

Though, in all actuality, he would sooner like to go home and have some nice tea once all this blew over. Alfred would not be appeased, however.

"But that's not fair! Mattie's the one who got lost, not me! Why should I have to not ride the rides?"

Arthur bit back a rather nasty retort, and instead said dangerously quiet, "I already explained it. Now be quiet." At his tone, even Jack had stopped babbling behind his head. Alfred just pouted now, lips twisting into an upset frown. He looked like he was going to start crying.

Arthur said nothing, not wanting to comfort Alfred after his bad behaviour, and certainly not wanting to make it worse.

Suddenly, however, a familiar squeal of delight broke seemed to break through the rest of the noise. Arthur's head whipped around in the direction of the mini-rollercoaster. What on earth?! Was Matthew actually riding rides when he was lost?!

He dragged Alfred along, towards the ride. "Matthew?! Matthew!"

Ludwig heard him, and as the ride slowed down, tugged on Matthew's arm. "Someone's calling you." Matthew's face brightened as he remembered he'd been lost. They were looking for him, they actually were looking for him this time!

As soon as the ride stopped, he jumped up and ran for the exit. Ludwig chased him, calling "Matthew, wait! You might get lost!" Which was a little ironic, considering he was technically already lost...

Arthur collided with Gilbert, who he recognized from work. "Gilbert?! What are you doing here?"

"What do you think? I'm taking Ludwig on the ride of his life!" Gilbert replied brashly. He and Arthur had talked about the kids they cared for before, after all. It shouldn't have been such a big surprise to see him here.

"Excuse me, I really have to find Matthew just now," Arthur said, abruptly cutting off the conversation. He couldn't allow himself to get distracted once again. Gilbert raised his eyebrows. "Hey, would this kid happen to have-"

"Not now, Gilbert! I'm sorry, I'm busy!" Arhtur replied, cutting him off as he hurried towards the exit of the ride.

Matthew had already spotted Arthur, and broke into a run. "Papa! I mean, Arthur! Here I am!"

Arthur extended his arms, and Matthew ran into them. He was hugged so tight it was a wonder he could breathe. "Don't ever do that again, Matthew! We had to look everywhere for you!" he said, somehow missing that it had been him who'd left Matthew behind, and not the other way around. Matthew, of course, apologized, saying it would never happen again.

Alfred, naturally, cut into the moment. "Can we ride on rides now? Because I was waiting a long time, and now we found Matthew..."

Arthur sighed. "Yes, Alfred, we can go on rides now." Alfred grinned that blinding smile of his. "C'mon Mattie, we have to ride on my favorite ride now!"

He grabbed Matthew's arm and dashed off, and Arthur followed in quick pursuit. "Hey! Don't you run off ahead of me! Alfred!!"

/AN/ And that is the end of the story. I hope it was enjoyable, and at least I've finally finished a story, you know? I really hope no one was holding their breath for this one...


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